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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/22708264">Trolls Really Do Steal Socks</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/mintypoppyseed/pseuds/mintypoppyseed'>mintypoppyseed</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>How to Train Your Dragon (Movies), Tales of Arcadia (Cartoons), Trollhunters - Daniel Kraus &amp; Guillermo del Toro</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - Time Travel, Angst, M/M, No Smut, Other, Rating May Change, Time Travel, Troll Jim Lake Jr., author made a theory with their friend, friend said "make a fic about theory", just some violence and character death, merlin kind of sucks, nothing too bad though?, that's what this is</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-02-13</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-08-02</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-04-28 13:26:53</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>3,765</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/22708264</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/mintypoppyseed/pseuds/mintypoppyseed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Jim is sent back in time to meet a young Merlin who believes he was sent there to help him destroy Morgana's son. Along the way he encounters historically innacurate vikings, familiar and unfamiliar magical beasts, and secrets long lost to time.</p><p>Hiccup finds a strange person on a flight one morning and finds that Gobber was right, for once. Trolls are real. He doesnt understand a word out of his mouth, but he thinks the troll isn't dangerous. He's befriended one supposedly vicious beast before, why not another?</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III/Jim Lake Jr.</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>17</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>197</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Chapter 1</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Hey! Feel free to drown me in criticism, I havent posted a fanfiction in about 5 years. This was written for my friend/roommate/pseudo-brother, who I jokingly made a theory with based on the stalklings, Morgana, and Gobber's sock-stealing trolls. I'm not gonna give too much away, but it gets a little wild. I apologize that my first fic in ages is a crossover between two completely unrelated shows with no real preexisting fan backing, but hopefully it turns out to be entertaining for you!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <em>
    <span>The apocalypse was here, and there was nothing Jim could do to stop it.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Merlin's champion. I have so looked forward to meeting you,” she chuckled. “And then killing you.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Morgana was a threatening presence, eyes green and glowing like greek fire settled on the surface of an oily pond. Her armor shined like the sun at the end of the world, though, all the brighter for the eternal night as she floated above them all. She was a deadly ball of fire and anger, a goddess of death and destruction.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>With a swipe of her hands, Jim's friends were sent flying into rubble and debris of their fallen town. He leapt to action, aching to go after his friends but knowing there was no way he could leave the fight.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>It didn't matter, though - she had restrained him with a blinding coil of light. She beckoned him to her with that scaley, draconic hand of hers, smiling as he struggled in his golden lasso.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Good evening, and good night.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>She slung him off into the distance as he yelled, and he knocked around like a pinball off crumbling structures on the way down, armor clanging with every impact.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>If he had been human, he would have stayed down. But he wasn't human anymore, was he?</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>When he stood, he found himself on the canal bridge, face-to-face with Morgana's tower of darkness— a structure that crackled like a storm and glowed with a vibrant, burning red, like the dying embers of a fallen star.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>It scared him more than anything he'd ever seen.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Behold, Trollhunter, the beauty of the Night Eternal!” She'd floated towards him again while he'd been distracted, arms still raised towards the lightless sky as she gathered her power.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Can't say I'm a fan,” he said drily, finally wrenching his eyes away from the toiling mass of smoke behind him.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>She wasn't having it, though. She sent large chunks of asphalt hurtling towards him, pushing him to the railing and nearly sending him over.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Jeez, lady,” Jim growled. “What did I ever do to you?”</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Merlin never told you what he used to craft his amulet, did he?” Morgana yelled, raising her magically charged scaled hand. “He took my left hand!</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“But you,” she whispered, “You took my son.” She blasted him, then, with a burst of gold that finally sent him over the edge.</span>
  </em>
</p><p><br/>
<br/>
</p><p> </p>
<hr/><p><br/>
<br/>
<br/>
</p><p>
  <span>Before he could hit the ground, Jim woke with a start, flailing briefly before finally sitting up. He was the only troll (er, half-troll?) awake in their little daytime camp, heaving for air in an abandoned, former 7-Eleven in New Jersey. All he could hear was his own frantic breathing and the shuffling of his armor as he shook, gently coming down off of the adrenaline of his dream-memory.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He eventually had the wherewithal to look around and Claire, thankfully, was still asleep beside him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She'd worked hard the day before, after all— everyone had. They'd found the Heartstone a few days ago and had been slowly but surely digging out the area surrounding it. So far, roughly two-thirds of the Heartstone Trollmarket refugees fit within the confines of the cave, and they were optimistic about settling everyone else underground within the week.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Everything was going great, so why did Jim feel so apprehensive?</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Maybe he'd just been thinking too much on the words of a madwoman, a creature corrupted by power and solitude, and the implications of him ever interacting with a child borne by such a beast. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>I think I'd remember a fight like that</span>
  </em>
  <span>, he thought. </span>
  <em>
    <span>She was crazy, it doesn't matter. Right?</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He sighed and left the room they'd holed up in, an old stockroom that still smelled like plastic cheese and old chemicals.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He tiptoed carefully over the slumbering troll bodies strewn about to get to the door, glass long gone and a few wooden planks nailed halfheartedly in its place. It was covered enough to keep the sunlight at bay, at least.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Looks like he wasn't the only one looking for a little time alone, though. A familiar wizard sat there, occupied turning something around in his hands. Jim caught a glimpse of barely lit silver, but he couldn't see much else from where he was standing. When he took a step forward to get a better look, though, his armor creaked and the item was gone into the man's pocket.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“If it isn't our Trollhunter,” Merlin said slowly, patting the ground beside him with a raised eyebrow. "Is something the matter?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Jim glanced back, wondering for a moment of he shouldn't just go back to sleep, before sighing and sitting with a </span>
  <em>
    <span>clang</span>
  </em>
  <span> beside the old man. None of his comrades so much as shifted in their sleep at the noise, and he hoped they stayed that way. For now, at least.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Hey, Merlin,” Jim turned to look at him. “How much do you know about Morgana? Like, who she was </span>
  <em>
    <span>before</span>
  </em>
  <span> she was… well, you know.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He gave the boy a long look, wary in a way that Jim hadn't seen in him before. “She was my apprentice, of course I know about her. It's not as if I'd take on a girl I'd known nothing of, even in my youth. What is this about, Trollhunter? Morgana is </span>
  <em>
    <span>gone</span>
  </em>
  <span>. It doesn't matter, not anymore.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I know, I know, but… I just can't seem to stop thinking about this thing she said to me,” he grumbled, reaching his hands up to tug at his horns in his frustration. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Just like the Trollhunter to worry over something unimportant," he laughed, pushing himself up on the doorway to stand. "You shouldn't worry about the ramblings of a woman gone from this world, boy."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"But she said I </span>
  <em>
    <span>took her son</span>
  </em>
  <span>! I don't remember doing anything that might make her think that?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Had he looked up, he might have noticed the wizard's eyes grow dark and distant.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Oh," he mumbled with a great sigh. "That, of course. I can't believe I nearly forgot, but I suppose now is as good a time as ever."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Jim looked up, hands falling to his lap.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Time for what?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The wizard knelt down and set a hand on his shoulder, eyes kinder than Jim could remember them ever being and sad in a way he didn't understand. "Jim, there… there are a lot of things I've done wrong, but you need to know that this is not one of them. Please, tell me you'll remember that."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Merlin, what? What are you-"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Before he could finish, though, Merlin had dropped his hand from the boy's shoulder and to the amulet, which glowed brighter at his touch.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I am truly sorry, Jim, but you will come to understand with time."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>There was a muted click and the amulet fell away from the trollhunter and into Merlin's hand. The armor faded away for the first time in what felt like forever, leaving a tracksuit and t-shirt he hadn't seen since he was human.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Jim stared at where the amulet had been, jaw slack. How had he removed it? He thought it wasn't possible!</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Merlin stepped back and slipped the amulet into his pocket then shakily, but quickly, he began to cast a spell. The words echoed loudly as he gained his confidence but somehow he did not wake those still inside.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Jim felt dizzy and sick without the comforting weight of his armor. It didn't help that it felt like his organs were being pulled backwards, his skin shifting to hold it in. Everything was fading away or warping, nothing felt right. He couldn't even see Merlin anymore it was so bright, but he could certainly still hear him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>If he couldn't understand a word, though, what did it matter?</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He would have tried to scream for him to stop whatever it was he was doing, but it felt like his mouth had left him, too. Everything was gone, everyone was gone.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He was all alone.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He was suddenly cut away from the light, adrift in quiet, slow darkness, and he was asleep.</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Chapter 2</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Jim awakens and Hiccup doesn't know what the fuck is going on.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Hey, sorry for this taking so long! Things have been a bit weird for me. Im a grocery store worker in a time where it's kind of awful to be a grocery store worker and I'm very tired lately. I'm also not used to writing at a consistent pace, like, at all???? The Wizards trailer really inspired me to finally finish this chapter, though! Sorry if this is kind of gross, feel free to point out any errors or anything! Criticism appreciated!</p><p>Also:<br/>Jim is ~17 here and Hiccup is ~19.<br/>Im going for more accurate biking clothes than is usually depicted in the HTTYD universe, I'll be drawing Hiccup and the main group some more historically accurate outfits soon enough!<br/>Jim has a thin layer of fur... because I said so.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>It felt as if he hadn't been asleep at all when he immediately jolted awake to a biting, cold sensation all around him. It was dark, and Jim panicked that he'd been sent to some dark dimension, like the one that had been in Claire's staff or that final bath he'd taken as a human.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>However, the solid, cold feeling around him crumbled as he moved, and fell away to reveal the cool light of the moon.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He sat up slowly, hands sinking into the ground beside him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He was surrounded by snow - the ground was pristine, untouched, and he didn't see sign of anyone near the trees or the rocky cliff on either side of him. The only evidence of life at all was the ice he'd just disturbed himself.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Where could he be that it was snowing? The other side of the planet? It was only summer back in New Jersey, unless Merlin had used his weird magic to play some kind of shitty prank. Christmas in July? Seemed like something the old man would be interested in.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He stood and shook off as much of the snow clinging to him as possible - difficult, seeing as it didn't melt on his furry, rock-like skin like he'd expected. How long had he been under there for ice and snow to be sticking to him in clumps like this? He was grateful not for the first time in recent days that he wasn't fully human anymore. Though he couldn't feel it to its fullest extent, even he could tell it was freezing out here, and his thin sweatsuit wouldn't have done him much good.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He huffed and kicked at the scattered snow, "Seriously, Merlin? This is </span>
  <em>
    <span>so</span>
  </em>
  <span> not cool!"</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He began pacing the area, thoughts swirling unsettlingly and panic beginning to rise in his gut.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"Alright, Jim, what do you know?" he sighed, running a hand through his hair and tugging on a horn. "It's snowing. There's no one </span>
  <em>
    <span>here.</span>
  </em>
  <span> Merlin took the </span>
  <em>
    <span>amulet</span>
  </em>
  <span>! Gah!"</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He crouched down and held his head in his hands.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"...and I'm all alone."</span>
</p><p>
  <span>As much as he'd wanted to keep his friends out of the fray initially, he'd really come to rely on them. Claire and Toby, and of course Blinky and Aaargh… But he'd done it before. Sure, he had the trolls for help, and he he'd had the amulet… but he was strong enough on his own!</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Oh, who was he kidding?</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He tried to calm down. Overthinking wasn't going to do anything for him - he couldn't do anything until he knew where he was. He glanced back at the cliff, picking up the smell of salt and the sound of what must have been waves under the howling of the wind. The woods were his best bet - it would at least offer some shade if he couldn't find shelter by daybreak.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Anything would be better than the inky, wet feeling of an underwater darkness right now, though, if he was being honest with himself.</span>
</p><p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p><p>
  <span>⋆⋆⋆⋆⋆</span>
</p><p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p><p>
  <span>He hadn't come across any people - not that he was surprised, he seemed to be in the middle of nowhere - but he did find a small cave surrounded on all sides by short cliffs and trees, with a large pond in the middle. Water, walls, a dark place to sleep… honestly, he couldn't have asked for a better shelter for this pitstop. Except, well, the 7-Eleven was </span>
  <em>
    <span>just fine</span>
  </em>
  <span> and he'd have </span>
  <em>
    <span>loved</span>
  </em>
  <span> to stay there.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It was difficult to push away his bitterness, but he was tired. He could curse his situation all he wanted, but it wouldn't do anything but keep him awake.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He settled in the back of the cave sullenly, using his hoodie as a makeshift pillow and curling up as tight as he could to ward off the familiar wariness he always had in total darkness these days. What he'd have given for the soft glow of Claire's phone, occasionally lighting up in the night..</span>
</p><p>
  <span>At least he didn't dream of Morgana.</span>
</p><p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p><p>
  <span>⥉⥉⥉⥉⥉</span>
</p><p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p><p>
  <span>The winter so far had been fairly mild for Berk, and Hiccup was glad for it. His leg still ached where it met his prosthetic, and he had to deal with the hassle of wearing a cloak while flying, but at least it wasn't as cold as last year. They'd nearly lost a whole nest of terrible terrible terrors, then, and Gobber had frozen half to death doing Odin knows what in the woods. No disasters this year, though, not even with the twins. He'd have been more suspicious if he hadn't been so busy - and busy he was, now, sneaking out in the early hours of the morning for some time alone with Toothless.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>There'd been so much to do and look after that his father had hardly let him out of his sight, and the little free time he did have his friends were there asking for something or another. Not that he minded, of course, it was just nice to get away, sometimes. He knew the responsibilities were inevitable, he was next in line for chieftain, but it still felt like a lot, sometimes.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"Alright, Bud," he whispered. "Let's go before someone sees us."</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He made sure his prosthetic was attached properly to the saddle before adjusting the dragon's tailfin for takeoff. Toothless made a happy, garbled sound and they were off, climbing above the clouds in record time. Hiccup held back the instinct to holler in his exhilaration and steered his friend towards the woods.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>On their way they bantered (well, Hiccup did - though Toothless was "talking" plenty as well) and flipped and played with the clouds. It was rare to have such freedom in times like these, and if they reveled in it a little longer than was strictly necessary, didn't they deserve it?</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They landed in their usual spot in the woods when the adrenaline had finally worn off, faces bright and breathing heavily. Hiccup's bedhead was wind-roughed and knotted, but he didn't care to fix it in that moment. Instead, he simply sat back and watched as Toothless hopped around in the pond looking for breakfast.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>⋆⋆⋆⋆⋆</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Little did they know, they'd just startled a very disheveled half-troll awake in the nearby cave. Jim had heard the loud </span>
  <em>
    <span>woosh</span>
  </em>
  <span> of wind and the snapping of branches accompanied by laughter and strange noises, then splashes of water, and found himself tiptoeing towards the entrance of the cave despite himself.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Outside was… strange, to say the least.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>There was a human boy lounging on a short boulder, watching something that looked a lot like a stalkling splash around in the water.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He tended up, reaching up for the sword that was no longer bound to him and cursing.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The 'stalking' turned to him, ears swiveled to face him, and its eyes narrowed to slits as it jumped from the water and growled.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"Whoah, Toothless!" the boy jumped up. "What's wrong, buddy?"</span>
</p><p>
  <span>His gaze shifted to the cave, but he didn't seem to spot Jim just yet - human, then, not a changeling if his eyes couldn't see through the darkness… unless he was just a very good actor. It was strange that ge understood him, though - the words were unfamiliar, but he somehow understood them nonetheless.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jim backed away, upsetting a few of the rocks beneath his feet and sending them skittering away, clacking against the cave floor and drawing the boy's attention.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He pulled out a sword, and, yeah Jim was only just now realizing he was dressed like a renfaire attendee, stepped towards the cave, giant hulking creature at his back. The sword alit with flame and Jim realized he probably wouldn't be able to hide - it wasn't a very deep cave, had no branching tunnels to speak of and certainly no suitable alcoves to hide in.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"Who's there?" the boy called, waving the sword like a flashlight.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jim was running out of time to make a choice, fight or take his chances with the sun, when he took a breath and decided.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He was going to half to talk with the other boy.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"My name is Jim," he called in the same unfamiliar tongue the boy had spoken in only moments before, still not stepping out. "Who are you?"</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"Jim?" the other boy stopped. "That's a… weird name.  I'm Hiccup Haddock of the Hairy Hooligan tribe. What are you doing on Berk? We don't exactly get </span>
  <em>
    <span>visitors </span>
  </em>
  <span>often, unless you count merchants and foes."</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jim rubbed his face. "Berk? Is that what you, uh, call this place?"</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"Yeah… uh, mind coming out where I can see you, mysterious cave stranger? It would really put Toothless here at ease."</span>
</p><p>
  <span>On cue, the stalkling growled, and Jim tensed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"I'd really rather not," he laughed, looking around for a decently sized rock he might able to make use of.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The boy, </span>
  <em>
    <span>Hiccup</span>
  </em>
  <span>, and the 'toothless' came closer, the light of the sword nearly illuminating his hiding place, and Jim's hand finally closed around a good rock.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"People don't usually take kindly tp people look like me, and I don't know much about you."</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"Trust me," Hiccup said drily. "We may not be the most tolerant of people, but we don't tend to judge appearances."</span>
</p><p>
  <span>When the light of the weapon finally fell upon Jim, he was battle-ready, rock in hand like he'd been prepared to bludgeon the boy if he had to.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The other boy froze, and the only sound echoing in the cave was the stalkling's low growls.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"What the </span>
  <em>
    <span>fu</span>
  </em>
  <span>-"</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Toothless pounced and Jim fell to the stone ground with a large </span>
  <em>
    <span>crack.</span>
  </em>
  <span> The creature made a sharp whining noise and its mouth began to glow, kind of like a sci-fi spaceship getting ready to fly, but before Jim could see what that meant, Hiccup called the stalkling off and the light was gone - and Jim could move.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He backed up as far as he could, holding his rock close and glaring at the creature that had just attacked him. It seemed to return the sentiment, and it was growling at Hiccup's side.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"Sorry about that," he groused, elbowing the stalkling. "He's a little overprotective."</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"Uh huh. Care to explain why you have a </span>
  <em>
    <span>stalkling</span>
  </em>
  <span> as a pet?"</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"Toothless isn't pet! And he's not a 'stalkling' either, whatever that is. He's a dragon - you know, the big, flying lizards that are everywhere in the archipelago?"</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"Uh, dragons? I'm the trollhunter, I think I'd know if those were real." He relaxed enough to rub the back of his head where it had hit the ground. "That's definitely a stalkling, a troll that can withstand the daylight."</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"I really don't think he's one of Gobber's imaginary sock-stealing monsters," Hiccup laughed. "Uh.. what are you, actually?"</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"I'm one of those 'imaginary sock-stealing monsters.' Whoever this Gobber is, he's got a lot more right than you."</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"Okay, I take offense to that," he frowned. "But Toothless looks </span>
  <em>
    <span>nothing </span>
  </em>
  <span>like you. Why would he be a troll?"</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"Well-" Jim paused. Stalkling's really didn't look like other trolls he'd seen, did they? Sure, they were somewhat metallic, but they didn't bear any evidence of stone or moss or hair, and they didn't have the humanoid proportions of other trolls he'd met - not to mention the fact that they walked in daylight and didn't seem to be able to speak. Even goblins and gnomes looked a little similar to trolls. "...okay, you've got me there, I did kind of ignore the required reading, but still - I think I'd know if dragons were a thing."</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"...Honestly, it's a little weird that you didn't know about them. They're kind of everywhere?" Hiccup pulled out his journal and began to write something down.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"What, uh… what are you doing?"</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"Oh, sorry," he looked up. "I've never met a troll before, and didn't know you all didn't know about dragons - just writing it down."</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He turned the book around to show him, and though Jim could understand what he </span>
  <em>
    <span>said</span>
  </em>
  <span>, he couldn't read the runes written on the page. They were similar in appearance to trollish, but not quite the same. It looked a little like the old norse he remembered from a lesson on vikings Strickler had taught ages ago.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"Uh-huh," he squinted. "Are you, like… a viking or something?"</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"Yeah, it wasn't obvious?" Hiccup snorted, putting the book away.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jim cradled his head in his hands and began muttering to himself furiously, pacing back and forth in the cave.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"You okay, troll - er, Jim?"</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"My mom is going to </span>
  <em>
    <span>kill</span>
  </em>
  <span> me!"</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"Okay, what are you talking about? I'm trying to be polite, here, and trust me that's </span>
  <em>
    <span>not</span>
  </em>
  <span> my strong suit, but you aren't making any sense!"</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jim turned and looked at Hiccup. His sword was beginning to dim and it clearly didn't have much juice left, but he could still see the confusion clearly in his face. He honestly kind of felt bad for the guy - he was dealing with meeting a troll much better than Jim had, which wasn't saying much, but he was doing the best that he could. Jim sighed and sat down.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"Sorry, I'm just… not having a good day," he replied honestly. "I've lost my friends, and I don't know why I'm here."</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Hiccup sat down opposite him, coaxing Toothless to do the same.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Before Jim could continue, though, there was the sound of another stalkling - </span>
  <em>
    <span>dragon</span>
  </em>
  <span> - landing outside.</span>
</p><p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p><p>
  <span>⥉⥉⥉⥉⥉</span>
</p><p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p><p>
  <span>Could there have been a worse time for Astrid to come looking for him?</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Hiccup turned to the troll he'd just met, Jim, who looked ready to fight, and motioned for him to </span>
  <em>
    <span>stay there.</span>
  </em>
  <span> Hiccup and Toothless left the cave to find Astrid dismounting Stormfly, looking annoyed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"Astrid-" Hiccup started, hands held up placating.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"Seriously, Hiccup? You skipped out on this morning's meeting?" she crossed her arms, obviously disappointed. "You said you were going to start taking things more seriously!"</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Oh, gods. He'd forgotten about that - he would have been there on time had it not been for his encounter in the cave, which he could argue was </span>
  <em>
    <span>probably </span>
  </em>
  <span>more important than the properly line between Thornbeef and Hairgrass's farms, but Astrid was already pushing him towards Toothless to mount before he could get a word in.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"You have a lot to do, today, and I really don't want to be the one babysitting you. You can relax later, the village needs you!"</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Hiccup glanced at the cave, swearing he could see the twin glint of eyes looking back at him, before muttering, "...Later. Right."</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>I might go through and fix this tomorrow... updating rlly late at night was a bad idea probably!!! Haha.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
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